Wonderful machines

I love machines. We have no end of them in our shop. Some are fairly simple, hand held, while others are much more complicated, running under the control of computers. Each machine does wonderful things.

But my favourite machines don't do anything useful by normal definition. These machines don't have moving parts nor do they actually even work. While sometimes very complicated visually their only purpose is to create fun. In order for the gismos to operate viewers have to suspend their disbelief and imagine the function. 

I've designed many dozens of these mechanical wonders through the years and built more than a few as well. Current projects in the shop include some of these delights and more are on my drawing board for future projects. Stay tuned...

Two things I enjoy

There's two things I really enjoy. The first is introducing a new crew member to what we do. Shane joined our crew last week. He's fresh from trade school after learning to be a welder. Shane's primary job will be to weld the bones of our projects. He will of course do many other jobs too and has already tried his hand at sculpting, mixing concrete and painting. We love his willing spirit and cheerfulness. 

The second thing I really enjoy is starting a brand new project. Today, we started building the second feature/sign for Playland at the Pacific National Exhibition. I fired up the plasma cutter to create the heavy baseplates from half inch thick plate steel. Then the building of the structural steel began in earnest. It is an unusual shape as the giant bonsai tree will also fill the role of an operator's booth for the ride. The tree will sweep to one side. This meant we had to beef up the structure to compensate. It will be an exciting build which the entire crew is excited about. With help from Len cutting many pieces of steel, Shane and I made great progress on our first day. This is going to be FUN!

Custom Design & Construction